Mobile web usage grows 34 percent year-over-year

More than 56.9 million consumers accessed the web via mobile device in July 2009, up from 42.5 million a year earlier--a 34 percent year-over-year leap--according to a new survey issued by market research firm The Nielsen Company. Year-over-year growth among users ages 13 to 17 (45 percent) and users 65-plus (67 percent) outpaced other mobile web user demographics--while men continue to constitute 53 percent of the mobile web audience, female mobile users increased 43 percent year-over-year, while the male audience grew 26 percent over the same period.

The Nielsen report also breaks down behavioral differences between male and female audiences. Men turn to the mobile web for technology news, sports and games--the top male-skewing mobile sites ranked by Nielsen include NBA.com, NFL.com, IGN.com and CNET.com. Women are more inclined to rely on the mobile web for social networking and shopping--their top mobile destinations include Target.com, MySpace.com, Facebook.com and Kraft.com.

For more on the Nielsen mobile web survey:
- read this Mediaweek article

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